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In Search of the Redline: Perspectives on Mental Workload and the ‘Underload Problem’

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Human Mental Workload: Models and Applications (H-WORKLOAD 2021)

Part of the book series: Communications in Computer and Information Science ((CCIS,volume 1493))

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Abstract

For human factors researchers and practitioners, mental workload remains both a crucial concept and a nebulous one. After decades of work in this field, there is still no real consensus on the construct of mental workload, although there is wide agreement about its multidimensional nature and the main ways to measure it. With increasing automation in many domains, the issue of underload has attracted a considerable proportion of research effort. This paper summarises work to propose a theory of underload based on the notion of malleable attentional resources, but also raises challenges that this theory – and, perhaps, underload in general – may be specific to automation. The paper goes on to discuss the elusive ‘redlines’ of overload and underload, and concludes by considering both theoretical and applied challenges for current research into mental workload.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Human Factors and Complex Systems Group, School of Design and Creative Arts, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK

    Mark S. Young

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  1. Mark S. Young
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Correspondence to Mark S. Young .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Technological University Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

    Luca Longo

  2. Technological University Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

    Maria Chiara Leva

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Young, M.S. (2021). In Search of the Redline: Perspectives on Mental Workload and the ‘Underload Problem’. In: Longo, L., Leva, M.C. (eds) Human Mental Workload: Models and Applications. H-WORKLOAD 2021. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 1493. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-91408-0_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-91408-0_1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-91407-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-91408-0

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